Chlorella zofingiensis as a promising strain in wastewater treatment

Abstract

This study was conducted to evaluate the efficiency of treatment by C. zofingiensis, C. vulgaris and Scenedesmus sp. in terms of nutrient loading, lipid productivity and the activity of photosystem II. Results from nutrient loading suggested that the nitrogen loading of C. zofingiensis at 0.406 mg/L/h was higher than C. vulgaris and Scenedesmus sp., and the phosphorus loading of C. zofingiensis at 0.075 mg/L/h was higher than C. vulgaris. During the treating process, C. zofingiensis accumulated lipid with higher productivity of 26.57 mg/L/d than C. vulgaris and Scenedesmus sp. In combination with photosynthetic efficiency, C. zofingiensis possessed superior trophic transfer efficiency and absorption capability, even in worse environmental conditions. C. zofingiensis, therefore, exhibited the promising application prospect in wastewater treatment.

Keywords: Chlorella zofingiensis; Lipid productivity; Nutrient loading; Wastewater treatment.